Educator Spotlight: Adam Hubert

Adam Hubert, a middle school science teacher at Hope Academy GSO, recently completed the NC Environmental Education Certification Program. In addition to being a science teacher, Adam is also an instructional coach and athletic director. “I teach and instructional coach from an experiential learning lens. I have a passion for connecting folks to the natural world.”

Adam says his favorite part of the certification program was getting to see the beauty of North Carolina. “The range of classes allowed me to connect with other like-minded professionals in all three regions of the state. This helped me grow in deeper appreciation for our state and to think creatively about ways to get my students to engage with the state.”

When asked about the certification experience that stood out for him, Adam says it was the NC Museum of Natural Sciences’ Educators of Excellence programs. “From snorkeling with hellbenders in the Blue Ridge mountains to helping NC State conduct research on the Neuse River Waterdog, these are experiences that helped shape how I viewed my role as a formal educator and how to engage with folks in the natural world.”

For his community partnership project, Adam helped to establish a cover board research transect at Knight Brown Nature Preserve. “As a frequent visitor to the Knight Brown Nature Preserve, I fell in love with the vernal pools and all the life that springs from them. As I built a relationship with the Piedmont Land Conservancy, I learned there was no formal data collection on the vernal pools on the property. I saw this as not only a growth opportunity for the conservancy but also my 8th grade students at Hope Academy GSO who deserve real world experiences collecting data and caring for the natural world. This led me to facilitate a cover board research project around two of the vernal pools on the property of Knight Brown Nature Preserve. My classes will be able to collect real world data and PLC will have some documentation on the amphibian breeding that happens in the vernal pools in the spring and fall.” Each spring and fall the 8th grade class at Hope Academy will monitor the amphibian migration to the vernal pools at the preserve.

Adam says the program changed his approach to teaching. “The principles of environmental education were important to my scope as a formal educator. Whether I am teaching about the natural world or not, I try to implement those principles into the classroom. The amazing nonformal educators that lead many of these courses, also model great teaching that I always bring back to my classroom. Whether it is learning how to nature journal with Melissa Dowland or taking a PLT (Project Learning Tree) course with Renee Strnad, I am always eager to bring back something I learned in these courses back to my students.”

Adam says the program also changed the way he views environmental issues. “When I first started teaching, I thought students needed to be bombarded with all the issues and crises happening on our planet. This program emphasized the importance of building a connection, knowledge and capacity before discussing the issues. A student won't care that vernal pools are not a protected wetland unless they have seen the bevy of life that depend on those ecosystems.”